


Unspoken

by digitalAlchemist



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Deaf Character, M/M, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-22
Updated: 2014-11-22
Packaged: 2018-02-26 04:57:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2638874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/digitalAlchemist/pseuds/digitalAlchemist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Roxas was born deaf, heavily reliant on his brother to live his life. After he pushed through puberty, things didn't seem to be looking any more hopeful; until he stumbled across Axel in a café, and then everything finally begin to look up. [Fic re-written in 2017]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unspoken

**Author's Note:**

> A lot of research (and re-writing!) went into this fic, so I hope that you guys enjoy reading it :)
> 
> (Any signed conversation will be in italics - hopefully it's not too tricky to see who's speaking! Rating is likely to go up, but we'll see.)

> [Text; 13:05, Sora]
> 
> I’m running a little late out of class; you know that coffee shop just by the front gates? We’ll meet there.

Roxas watched through the window of the café, his eyes flicking between couples having coffee dates and students nose-deep in textbooks or laptops. He paused when his gaze landed on one of those students; the first thing he noticed were the plumes of bright red hair, tied back into a loose ponytail. He was quite handsome, and by the way his legs were jutting out from under the table he was pretty tall as well.

Roxas hadn’t had much time in his life to explore his sexuality, nor really a chance to consider a relationship at all. He knew that he was pretty open to trying anything at this point, and there was just something about the redhead that piqued his interest. He tried his hardest not to stare, shifting his vision to the other side of the room every so often, but Roxas couldn’t stop himself from constantly glancing at the guy. He was interrupted by a gentle press of a hand on his shoulder; turning to his left, he came face-to-face with his brother.

_Hey, sorry I took so long._

**_Don’t be silly, it’s no problem at all. How was class?_ **

_The same old, you know? Notes upon notes upon notes…_

Roxas chuckled, nodding his head; he knew the feeling all too well. **_Oh, do you need to go home right away?_ **

_Uh..._ Sora checked his watch, before checking his phone. _I don’t think so, no. What’s up?_

 **_Can we go inside?_ ** He pointed into the coffee shop’s window, jabbing his finger against the glass.

_You want a drink?_

**_Sort of… There’s a guy in there that looks really cute, and I wanna say hi to him._ **

_Oh really?_ It was Sora’s turn to laugh quietly. _You’ve finally found someone you like the look of?_  

He punched Sora’s arm lightly, huffing and pouting at him. **_Hey, no fair. Just because you and Kairi hit it off right away._ **

_I knew you’d say that. You know how much trouble it was to get Riku involved too..._  

 ** _I know, I know. You worked really hard._** He smiled, jabbing his thumb towards the café. **_Can we? I’ll even buy you a drink._**  

 _Go on then, you’ve twisted my arm. Let’s see this mystery man who’s getting you all excited._  

Sora led the way inside, holding the door open for Roxas to step inside; he noticed the anticipation practically vibrating through his body, smiling to himself. Roxas found the table that the guy was seated at, nudging Sora’s gaze in the general direction of it. He nodded, lips turning upwards into a sly smile - Roxas had pretty good taste; nice shirt, slim fingers wrapped around a mug, trendy glasses perched on his nose.

A nudge on his shoulder, and Roxas passed over a handful of coins to pay for drinks.

 _What would you like?_ Sora took the money, dropping it into his pocket for the time being.

**_The usual, please. With almond milk._ **

_Gotcha. You’re still okay with this? Not freaking out?_

**_Freaking out a lot, but on the inside. I can’t really explain it, but… this feels right?_ **

Sora nodded, giving his brother a thumbs up. _I’m right here, so don’t be afraid - okay?_

 ** _Thank you, Sora._** Roxas squeezed his arm gently, smiling wide.

Sora ordered their drinks, eyeing up the potential candidate from a safe distance away. He seemed to carry himself in a very sophisticated manner; legs crossed under the table, notebooks and laptop spread perfectly on the table in front of him, tapping his pen against his lips.

**_You’re not sizing him up like some prime beef, are you?_ **

_No, no. Just observing. He seems nice._

“Vanilla latte with almond and a mint green tea, for Sora?”

Sora raised his hand and took the drinks, thanking the barista.

**_Ready when you are._ **

Sora swallowed thickly, gingerly walking to the table in the corner. “Uh, excuse me sir...”

* * *

He looked up at the source of the timid voice, humming to affirm that he was paying attention. Above the rim of his glasses, he could see a pair of teenagers somewhat awkwardly stood next to the table; one far more nervous than the other.

“Really sorry to bother you whilst you’re working, but would you mind if we sat with you?” The slightly shorter brunette motioned to the taller of the two. “My brother would like to chat.”

The blonde stood beside him waved, offering a small smile. The resemblance was uncanny, especially in the deep blue of their eyes - twins, he assumed.

“No, not at all.” He shuffled some of his paperwork together and slid it back into his bag, making some room on the table for their drinks. “I could do with a break, to be honest.”

Laughing quietly, the brunette pulled out a chair and sat down whilst his plus-one brought another one over. “Thanks. Sorry again for interrupting you.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I’m pretty much all caught up anyway.”

The blonde returned to the table and sat down, carefully nudging his seat forward, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“Well, since you’re settled we should probably get some introductions done.” He extended his hand, offering it to his guests. “Axel Stillbridge. A pleasure to meet you.”

“Sora Tenzo.” He shook Axel’s hand, smiling again. “And this is Roxas, my brother.” He nodded towards the third member of the table. Roxas also took his hand, his grip a little lighter than Sora’s.

“Twins?” Axel glanced between them both, curious as to whether his initial thoughts were correct.

Sora chuckled, following Axel’s eyes. “Yeah, you got us. Although Roxas is technically older, but only by 10 minutes.” He signed, almost melancholy at the knowledge. “It was the eyes, right? Everyone can always tell by our eyes.”

Axel nodded, nudging his glasses back over his eyes with a finger. “They’re pretty unique, you have to admit.” He shifted his attention to Roxas, who was currently chewing on his lower lip. “So you’re the older of the two. I imagine you rub that in as often as you can!” Axel laughed to himself, faltering slightly when he received no response.

“Oh, please forgive him. Hang on.” Sora interjected, waving at Roxas to get his attention before reeling off a series of complex hand movements. He grinned when his brother responded in kind, sniggering to himself. “Roxas was unfortunately born deaf, so I’ll need to translate for him, as it were.”

Axel paled slightly, his cocky expression falling slightly. “Oh god, I’m so sorry! Apologies for being insensitive.”

“What? Oh, don’t be silly - how were you to know? It’s okay, we can work together.” Sora flashed another brilliant smile in his direction. “Do you know ASL?”

“Only a tiny, tiny amount that I learnt many eons ago. I can just about manage ‘hello’ and ‘are you okay?’ but even those are a little fuzzy.” Axel chewed on the inside of his cheek. “So, what brings you over here this afternoon?”

“Roxas was, uh… interested in talking to you.” He scratched the side of his nose, scrunching his face up as he caught a particularly satisfying itch.

“Well, I’m more than happy to oblige.” Axel shuffled in his seat, readjusting his legs as cramp began to set in. “What would you like to know?”

The pair exchanged another non-verbal conversation, Roxas nodding along with Sora’s movements. He turned to Axel, pointing to him and then his notes, mouthing out a simple question whilst drawing in the air with an imaginary pencil - ‘What are you working on?’

“Oh, these? They’re exam notes for my chemistry PhD - the test is next week.” He fanned the sheets out slightly. “I’m minoring in teaching, so it’s a bit of a juggling act.”

In his peripheral vision he saw Sora translating his words for Roxas, whose face lit up with awe as he processed the information. In turn, he flashed a message back at his brother - Axel noted that this one may be too complicated for simple gestures.

“Is this your final year, or have you got some more to come?” Sora asked as proxy, his eyes shifting to Axel’s face.

“Yeah, final year. All of the stresses and strains that come with it, too.” He laughed, rolling his pen between his fingers. “How about you two?”

“This is my final year as well, which is why Roxas was asking.” He looked over to him again, a fond smile pulling the corners of his mouth upwards. “He didn’t want to go to university, so it’s all a bit alien to him. I’m doing a creative writing degree, writing a novel draft on the side. Which is about as fun as it sounds.”

“I can imagine. Is that what you want to do with yourself after uni? Full-time author?”

“I wouldn’t mind it. I can stay at home and look after Roxas, and actually put my degree to use.” Sora laughed again, swiping some loose hair out of his face. “Roxas… is coding a little project at the moment, just to pass the time. He finished a computing course at college, and taught himself mobile apps online.”

“Oh, really?” Axel lifted an eyebrow, looking over at Roxas. “That’s quite impressive, to be self-taught like that. I wouldn’t have the patience.”

Roxas shrugged, smiling at him. He tapped at his wrist, where a watch would be. ‘It passes the time.’

“I’m really sorry Sora, but I have to ask - should I be speaking any slower so that Roxas can lip-read what I’m saying? I’m afraid I don’t have much experience in this field.”

Sora laughed again, catching him off guard. “No, no - don’t worry about it. Whilst signing can sometimes be easier for the two of us, Roxas can read pretty well by now so there’s no need to do anything different.” Another fond glance at his brother, who was currently laughing to himself, followed by a shy smile. “It’s quite difficult taking him into social situations, and he knows that. But he’s doing his best to manage with his disability.”

“I’m sure he is - I commend your perseverance, Roxas.” He specifically aimed this comment at the blonde, cracking a wide smile. “It must’ve been hard growing up, but you seem to be doing pretty good right now.”

Roxas nodded, a blush creeping onto his cheeks as a smile settled on his lips. ‘Thank you, Axel.’

“Oh!” Sora suddenly piped up, starling Roxas slightly. “Roxas can show you the thing he’s been working on, it’s really cool!” He motioned for his brother to take out his phone, and received a nervous glance in return. “C’mon, it’s great!”

With a reluctant sigh Roxas pulled his phone out of his pocket and unlocked it, passing it over to Sora. He looked over at Axel, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth again. ‘It’s not that good.’

Offering a small sympathetic smile, Axel took the offered device and took in the contents of the display. “Alright Sora, what am I looking at here?”

“It’s a sign language translation tool. Try writing something in the box at the top there.”

Opening the keyboard, he tapped in a basic phrase - “how are you feeling?”.

“Alright, now if you hit the button in the top right there, it’ll piece together a little animation of the correct hand movements.” Doing as instructed, Axel watched a little pair of hands sign out the sentence he’d entered. “You can slow the animation down to try and learn the movements, or you can tip the screen sideways and it’ll play the animation full screen so that you can show it to somebody. A lot of people use texts or notepads to communicate, but Roxas wanted something that would still feel organic.”

Axel looked up, noticing Roxas’ uncomfortable squirming in his seat. He cleared the text on the app and typed something else - “are you okay?”. He spun the phone around and let it play the movements to Roxas; his face softened slightly, before he gently took the phone back and tapped a few things on screen. He rearranged his coffee cup and leant the device against it, signing out a message to it. After a slight pause, he smiled and handed the phone back to Axel. The screen had been replaced with a large block of text, and another pair of hands recreating Roxas’ signs. In large, white font it read: “I’m just a little nervous - this is the first time somebody else has seen this.”. Axel whistled, nodding in amazement.

“Roxas, this is incredible! It can do real-time analysis from the front camera?” The blonde nodded, another blush creeping onto his cheeks as he registered the praise. “Woah… you coded this yourself, too?” Another nod. “That’s… so amazing.” Axel prodded around the app a little more, exploring.

Roxas tapped Axel’s hand lightly, waving his hand in a loose ‘stop’ motion. He held up two fingers and crossed them over, then pointed at the phone. ‘It’s nowhere near finished yet, so you might find some major bugs if you look around.’

Nodding once more, Axel fiddled around with his phone some more before locking it and passing it back over. “Still, that’s fantastic progress to say it’s not ready. That’s seriously impressive work, Roxas.” He smiled, shooting a thumbs up in his direction.

“See, Rox? I told you it was a good start!” Sora had nudged Roxas’ attention away, beaming wide at his twin. “You’re gonna help a lot of folks out with this, and you know that.”

He had the good grace to look sheepish, even though he was clearly more terrified than brimming with pride. ‘Thank you guys.’ He had to look away from them both, his cheeks heating up even more under their gaze.

Axel briefly checked his watch; noticing the time, he began to pull together all of his notes. “I’m really sorry to dash on you lovely gentlemen, but I have to be back in class soon.” He tucked his laptop into his bag alongside the sheets of paper. “Thank you very much for this lovely chat, though. It’s certainly brightened up my dull afternoon a little.” He flashed them both a warm smile. “I hope we can meet again soon - I’m always in here on lunch, so you know where to find me.”

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Axel. I’m sure we’ll see you again.” Sora waved and Roxas followed suit, a small smile lifting his cheeks.

“Take care, boys.” With a small salute, Axel stood up and headed for the door.

When Roxas was satisfied that he was out of sight, he spun around to face his brother.

**_Sora he’s wonderful and so kind and funny and oh my god_ **

Sora laughed out loud at his brother’s frantic attempts to keep his hands under control, placing his on top of Roxas’.

_Woah, woah. Easy. Take a breath and let’s try that again. He seems really nice, yeah. Would you like to come back and see him soon?_

**_Yes. Without a doubt. I want to get to know him more, even if there’s this dumb barrier between us._** He gestured in front of his face, trying to emulate a physical wall.

_I know, I know. But he seems to understand well enough, so I’m sure you could work something out. If you’re done with your coffee, shall we head home?_

Roxas nodded, draining the rest of his drink and throwing the cup into the nearby bin. **_Let’s go._**

* * *

Later on that night, Roxas was lying on his bed, scrolling through his phone and clearing out old messages and apps that he no longer needed; his coding software was updating itself, so he had some time to kill. Happy that he’d got his storage back down to a reasonable level, he was about to head back to his desk, but noticed something a little off - he didn’t keep many contacts in his phone, only the necessary ones like Sora and his parents alongside some good friends that he occasionally messaged, but he distinctly remembered having less than the screen was saying he had. Trying to wrack his brain for when he added another contact - and who, for that matter - he swiped applications away until he returned to the home screen and tapped on his phonebook. Right there, at the top of the list, was the culprit.

Axel Stillbridge.

His brain felt like it stopped functioning for a moment as he stared at the letters on his screen. Roxas could almost hear cogs in his brain ticking over, trying to process the information displayed in front of him. Tapping Axel’s name, his phone number slid into view underneath a stock profile image; it was the requisite 11 digits long, so that was something at least. Pressing his thumb into the little SMS bubble next to the number, his texting app popped up, ready to send a message. Roxas’ fingers hovered above the keyboard, wondering what on earth to say to him.  With panic starting to set in, he locked his phone and rolled off of the bed.

**_Sora!_ **

He gently prodded his brother’s arm to get his attention, shoving the mobile into his field of view.

 _What’s wrong?_ Roxas pointed at the screen, and the name currently being displayed. _Ohh, he’s a suave customer, I see. He must’ve put it in when he was playing with your app._

**_What do I do with it?!_ **

_Well message him, obviously. He’s given you his number for a reason, dweeb._

**_And say what?_ **

_That’s completely down to you, little brother. Just break the ice a little, say that it was nice to meet him. You can take it from there._

Roxas pouted at him. **_I’m older than you, Sora._ **

_Irrelevant. You need to talk to him though - he was kind enough to give you his number, so use that to your advantage._ Sora winked, digging his elbow gently into Roxas’ ribs. _Don’t leave the nice guy hanging, now - he’s probably been waiting for you to text him all day._

He nodded with a newfound excitement, running back into his bedroom and nudging the door shut with his foot. He took a deep inhale of air, bracing himself before popping open the messaging app again.

> [Me] 21:40:
> 
> Hey Axel! I noticed your number on my phone and thought I’d say hi! It was gr

He deleted the entire message before going any further, sighing quietly. Mentally scolding himself, Roxas started again.

> [Me] 21:40:
> 
> Hey; it’s Roxas. Found your number on my phone :P Hope you weren’t too late for class earlier?

There we go, much better. Sending the text, Roxas dropped his phone next to him and flopped back onto the bed, draping his hand over his eyes. His mind replayed the events in the café earlier, bringing a shy smile to his face, and a slight blush to his cheeks. Beside him, his phone buzzed with an incoming notification.

> [Axel] 21:40:
> 
> Oh, hey Roxas! I see you found my little secret~ I was right on time, don’t worry :) How are ya?
> 
> [Me] 21:41:
> 
> I’m glad! Didn’t want to cause you trouble… I’m okay, just bored at home lol - you?
> 
> [Axel] 21:41:
> 
> Not too bad myself, just waiting for some food to finish. Late-night lasagne; living the dream!
> 
> [Me] 21:42:
> 
> Wow, what a trendsetter! Did you make it yourself, or are you a man of the microwave?
> 
> [Axel] 21:42:
> 
> Roxas, I’m offended! I made it from scratch, thank you very much - I’m an excellent cook, I’ll have you know.
> 
> [Me] 21:43:
> 
> Really now? I might have to come round and see for myself :P

By the time the message had sent, Roxas realised he couldn’t take it back - he stared at the characters on the screen, internally freaking out. He’d actually just invited himself to this man’s home to test his cooking; he slapped his hand over his face, groaning quietly.

> [Axel] 21:43:
> 
> You’d better prepare yourself for an evening of the finest dining you’ve ever sampled! I don’t do shit by halves, my friend.

Roxas chuckled, glad he was freaking out over nothing.

>  [Roxas] 21:43:
> 
> Yeah? Sounds amazing - what’s your signature dish? Every good chef has one.
> 
>  [Axel] 21:44:
> 
> I make a mean teriyaki steak, and I’ve been told that my red velvet cake is the best around. :smugface:
> 
> [Roxas] 21:44:
> 
> Pfft, I’ll have to decide that for myself - I am very critical of how cakes should be baked!

He noticed a pop-up on his PC, signalling that his updates were finished. Standing up again and walking to the machine, Roxas seated himself and shook the mouse to wake the screen. Sighing as he was met with a face full of unfinished code, he plugged his phone in and started debugging.

In the hour that passed, Roxas had managed to squash out most of the minor issues from the new build of his app; the notepad page next to him was now half covered in scratched-out to-dos, little emoji faces next to the harder ones depicting various states of anger and frustration.

> [Axel] 22:59:
> 
> Oops, sorry! I had to take a phone call and was longer than I wanted to be. Trust me Roxas, you’ll love my food :P Speaking of, are you free next weekend? Would love to take you for a meal somewhere, get to know each other a little more.

A giddy rush of thrill pulsed through Roxas as his phone screen lit up with the new message; he mentally fist-bumped Past Roxas for his excellent life choices.

> [Roxas] 23:00:
> 
> No problem! I was busy coding anyway, so it’s fine~ Fairly sure my calendar’s clear; Saturday evening sounds good?
> 
> [Axel] 23:01:
> 
> Sounds excellent! If you want, I can come pick you up around 7? I’ll book us somewhere for half past.
> 
> [Roxas] 23:01:
> 
> Perfect :) I’ll let Sora know to expect you. I can’t wait!

Practically bouncing with excitement, Roxas darted out into the front room to talk to Sora - everything was moving super fast, and he wanted his brother’s advice.

_You okay, Rox?_

**_More than okay! Axel’s invited me out on a date!_ ** He beamed widely, fingers playing with the hem of his t-shirt.

 _Ohh, really now?_ Sora’s lips twisted into a sly smirk, pausing his game to properly focus on Roxas. _Incredible - you two must’ve really hit it off in a big way. Where’re you going?_

**_Somewhere for a meal, next Saturday night. He’s gonna pick me up from here, but I haven’t given him the address yet… Just wanted to make sure you were okay with him?_ **

_Aww, Roxas; you don’t have to get my permission for things any more! You’re grown up now, you can choose your own way in life. It’s not like you’re going to see some dodgy stranger from a shady dating site - I’ve met the guy. He’s got a thumbs up from me, don’t worry._

**_That’s such a relief; thank you, Sora. I’ll go give him our details - he’ll be here about 7 o’clock, but I’ll tell you closer to the time._ ** He stepped forward, bending down to give his twin a hug of gratitude.

_Just remember to stay safe and you’ll be fine. I’m sure Axel will look after you._


End file.
